Underneath It All
by xBakaTulipx
Summary: Angel Season 5 AU Behind Angels back, W&H hire a new executive to work with Angel, a supposedly deadly and powerful witch. Who is this newcomer and what does this mean for the future of Angel Inc? Rating will go up but not until much later
1. Chapter 1

Title: Underneath It All  
Chapter: 1

Characters: ATS S5 Ensemble and Willow  
Pairing: Fred/Willow in later chapters  
Overall Rating: R  
Chapter Rating: PG  
Warnings This Chapter: None

* * *

**Chapter 1**

With an unassuming _ping_ the elevator announced its arrival and opened the doors to allow Angel and Wesley Wyndham-Pryce out into the bustling lobby. Wrapped up in a heated discussion as to the proper way to deal with a clan of Worslaks demons (Angel, of course, was gunning for the standard slice and dice scenario, whereas Wesley believed that these demons that fed on electricity should simply be supplied with batteries to snack on, thus stopping them from eating powerlines and causing blackouts), the pair failed to notice Eve leaning over Harmony's desk, apparently engaged in girl talk.

"The Worslakses are widely known to be a human-friendly species of demons. I can't see what good it would do to destroy them," Wesley explained.

Angel just threw up his hands in anger, "Have you seen how many people their leftovers have killed. There're exposed wires all over the city."

"Over the years negotiations with the clan have-"

Wesley was cut off by a very short voiced Angel. "If you say brought in a lot of money or have been beneficial or-"

Angel was cut off by a very whiny voiced Harmony. "Boss! What are you doing here?"

He turned to look at his secretary. "We've been over this. I work here. That door over there, that's my office. Why it's my office, I'm still not sure. Cause I'm supposed to be fighting the good fight, but here I am fighting over power-line eating demons instead!" He huffed.

"I meant, what are you doing here? You're supposed to be picking up our new executive at the airport." Harmony said with an unvoiced Duh.

Angel's eyes narrowed. "New executive, what new executive? I didn't hire any new executive." His gaze turned accusatorily to Eve, who simply smiled, holding the folder she carried against her chest.

"Sorry, Angel." She started. "But this move was made by the Senior Partners."

"This branch of the firm belongs to **us**." He said, jabbing his finger accusatorily at Eve.

"This has nothing to do with your work here, you're doing an excellent job by the way." She said, smirking and giving Angel an overly energetic thumbs-up. "And while you are the CEO, this is a Wolfram and Hart office, they do have some say as to the workings of this place. Your new executive is going to be the Vice President in charge of the Magical Development department, and she has quite the credentials. Also." Eve checked her watch, "She should be at the airport now." She looked at Angel with saddened eyes, "Really, is this the kind of impression you want to make on a new co-worker?"

"If she's so powerful, why doesn't she just zap herself over here?" Angel asked, folding his arms over his chest.

Eve simply shook her head and sighed, "I just thought you'd want to give her a warm, fuzzy, Wolfram and Hart welcome. Isn't that your thing? Anyways, I have a meeting to get to." She wiggled her fingers in a cheery goodbye, "Toodles."

Watching the bitch from hell walk away, Angel snatched one of the porcelain unicorns from Harmony's desk and hurtled it down against the ground where it shattered into about five billion flecks of powder.

"HEY!" Harmony cried. "That was my favorite one!"

"Man, I hate her." Angel hissed

Harmony knelt down, trying to scoop up the ex-unicorn dust. "I don't know why you hate my statue. One of my minions gave her to me." She sighed nostalgically, "Good times."

"Not the statue." Angel said. He gestured vaguely in the direction Eve had left in. Harmony's mouth formed a silent "oh."

"A new executive." Wesley mused. "Well I can't really imagine it's anyone good."

"Oh no," Harmony said. "I heard in the lunch room that she's big time bad news. Tried to end the world once. Controls some powerful magics. A lot of people are trying to get transferred into her department."

"Well we'll have to keep a close eye on her, obviously." Wesley said. "And I suppose the best way to start would be to pick her up at the airport."

"Pick who up at the airport?" Fred said, as she rounded the corner, her lab coat folded over her arm and crusted with what appeared to be some kind of hardening orange goo.

"New executive." Harmony said, sitting back down behind her desk. "Major evil."

"Oh." Fred said, her voice flat and unsurprised. Evil. Nothing out of the ordinary here.

"No." Angel said, a final nail in the coffin. "We'll get one of the drivers to pick her up. I don't want any one of my people stuck in a car with someone that dangerous."

"But," Wesley pried out a metaphorical crowbar, "Showing up in person may be the best course of action. We can find out more about her from the start, before she actually gets to the offices."

"I say we all go," Gunn said, approaching the group. He ground his knuckles against his palm, a bizarrely threatening contradiction to the pressed suit he wore. "Give what's-her-face a big ol' step-outta-line-and-look-who-you're-messin'-with greeting."

Wesley shook his head, "Too confrontational. If we present her with such mistrust right at the start, it will have her defensive and suspicious, making it nearly impossible to learn more about why she's here. Only one of us should-"

"I'll go," Fred volunteered. "I was about to go out for a little bit anyways. I don't mind playing chauffer for a while."

"No way, Fred." Angel said. "I do not want you in a car alone with a powerful witch."

Fred pleadingly looked to Wesley to back her up, but he merely frowned. "I'm inclined to agree with Angel. I think it would be best if one of us were to go."

With one last desperate look she turned to Gunn, "No way. No how."

Fred sighed, shaking her head at the foolish boys, and fished her car keys out of her pocket. "I appreciate ya'll's concern. But I'm going. Besides, what better way to get information out of a girl than girltalk?" She smirked.

Finding absolutely no comeback, the guys merely frowned as Fred gave a wave and disappeared into the elevator.

"I don't like this at all," Gunn said as he watched the numbers indicating the floor the elevator was on dip lower and lower. "She could be walking right into a trap."

"I should have someone follow her," Angel declared. "Harmony, get someone from the Undercover Tracking department following her."

Harmony bobbed her head, "Righty-o boss." She picked up the phone and punched a number. "Hey, Kelly. Can you connect me to the Stalking Department? Thanks."

"Who knows who this new person is?" Wesley mused with a worried tone of voice, "For all we know it could be the darkest sorceress who ever lived. It could be-"

---

"Willow!!" Fred called out, waving her arm high above her head to attract the witch's attention. Spotting her, the redhead beamed brightly and picked up her bag, running towards the bubbly brunette.

Meeting somewhere in the middle, Fred threw her arms around her in a nearly bone-crushing hug, surprising for someone of her build. "You're the new VP in charge of Magical Development."

Willow nodded. "Yeah. I heard there was an opening and I figured I could be of some use to Angel and his quest for making goodness out of badness. Gotta say I'm a fan of that."

Fred could barely contain her excitement, bouncing up on her tiptoes. "This is going to be great!"

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Love it? Hate it? Comment for more chapters. :D 


	2. Chapter 2

Title: Underneath It All  
Chapter:2

Characters: ATS S5 Ensemble and Willow  
Pairing: Fred/Willow in later chapters  
Overall Rating: R  
Chapter Rating: PG  
Warnings This Chapter: None

Author's Notes:

Maverick500- Spike will make some appearances. I'm glad you liked the twist, there's more and more to come

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**Chapter 2**

ping The elevator greeted the floor with a happy chime, allowing a bubbling Willow and Fred out onto the mostly empty evening floor. The pair was trailing suitcases and duffle bags behind them, wrapped up in a mutual babble over what seemed to be about… well… some science junk from what Harmony could tell from her desk, boring and not eavesdrop worthy. So she did what she did best, she interrupted, "Willow!" She beamed as she got up from her desk, walking towards her with open arms.

The witch's only reaction was a slight scream of some unintelligible consonant sounds and seizing Fred by the shoulders, holding her in front of her as a hug shield. "Don't bite me!"

Harmony pouted. "Are you still holding that against me? That was like… ten years ago."

"Four." Willow corrected.

"Whatever," Harmony said, rolling her eyes.

Fred managed to get herself out of Willow's grip. "Willow, Harmony works here, she's Angel's secretary, and she's… well… I guess she's good." Harmony gave a bob of her head to accentuate Fred's words.

The blonde was about to add to that when the phone at her desk rang and she headed back to answer it.

Before Willow and Fred could resume their conversation, the clicking of heels on the floor drew their attention. They turned to face the newcomer and saw Eve walking towards them in full meet-and-greet mode.

"Miss Rosenberg," she said, holding out her hand to shake. "My name's Eve. I'm liaison to the Senior Partners. So glad you made it. How was your trip?"

"It was-"

"Uh-huh." Eve cut her off. "Well if you'll just leave your bags here someone will take them up to your suite. The rooms are usually for people staying over night on business, so I apologize we couldn't have better accommodations on such short notice."

Willow smiled and waved it off, "I'm sure it'll be fine."

"Right. Now if you'll just follow me, I'll-"

"Actually," Willow interrupted, "Fred was going to show me around. Old friends to see and things like that."

Eve gave Fred a sharp look before turning back to Willow with a pleasant smile, "Of course. Well if you have any questions, I'll be around." She turned and started away. The redhead simply stared until the clicking of her heels on the floor faded.

"Well she's…" Willow blinked, trying to grasp a word. "Enthusiastic?" She looked to the Texan for confirmation, but merely got a shrug.

"Hey, Willow" Harmony said looking up from her phone call. "Angel has some stuff to deal with tonight," she rolled her eyes, "So you can't see him until tomorrow."

"That's fine." She smiled, "It's not like I'm going anywhere." She felt a slight pressure on her hand and turned to see Fred grasping it tightly with a smile on her face.

"Come on, I can't wait to show you my lab!" She said.

"You have your own lab?" Willow asked, her eyes wide, voice hushed with awe.

The Texan beamed.

+++

"And then he was all, 'But I'd like to have my kneecaps.'" Willow said, recounting Giles's story and sending Fred into another fit of giggles as they rounded a corner.

"Oh my god, I just cannot see Wesley like that. And he wore tweed?" She asked.

"The tweediest," said the redhead. "Oh and he used to have a big slobbering crush on Cordelia! They'd see each other and practically start babbling as much as I do."

Fred gave Willow a friendly shove. "Get out."

"My hand to Hecate." She said.

"Wow. You know-"

"Well aren't you two just a couple of peas in a pod." Their conversation was interrupted by the jolly green empathy demon, as he approached from the other end of the hall snapping his cell phone shut and opening his arms for a hug for the redhead who readily obliged. "Willow, Honey, how've you been?"

"I've been good. You know, saving the world instead of trying to end it. It was a phase, I'm over it." She smiled.

"Hence the job switch?" he asked.

She bobbed her head yes in answer.

"Well that's just peachy. Having you around is really gonna brighten this place up. Listen, sweet cheeks, I gotta go, gotta make a call to Tim Burton, pitching an idea about a boy with horns who can tell people their future."

"It wouldn't be by hearing them sing by any chance would it?" Willow raised an eyebrow.

"Tell no one," Lorne warned, he waved over his shoulder as he flipped his phone open and held it to his ear. "Tim, baby-" his voice faded as he disappeared around the corner.

+++

Fred pushed open a door, "And I guess this would be your room."

Willow let out a low whistle as she walked inside. The room had a very dark, modern and technological feel to it, from the track lighting that ran around the room, to the large plasma screen television, to the little kitchenette with dark countertops with shiny flecks of mica embedded in the stone. Crossing the living room she peered through an open door, the bedroom. Her suitcases were already in the room, lying next to a bed made up with red satin sheets. "Wow… this is… intense."

"It's better than my apartment," Fred replied, with no little amount of envy of the grand size of the room.

A clock blared 9:13 PM on the nightstand. The redhead frowned and turned to the Texan. "You know, I'm kinda beat from my flight, I think I'm just going to take a shower and hit the hay."

"Sure thing," Fred smiled. "I'll see you in the morning!" She closed the door behind her as she left. Willow watched her leave and waited a few moments before padding softly across the room. She leaned the tip of her forefinger against the doorknob and whispered a soft incantation. The lock gave off a bright glow, then the entire doorframe did the same. As quickly as the brightness grew, it had dissipated.

She looked anxiously back at the clock. 9:14. Sighing, she began to strip off her dirty clothes and headed for the bathroom, which was no less grand than the main room. She stepped into the shower. She leaned against the far wall and slid down to the floor with a sigh, fighting tears that were threatening to come to her eyes.

---

Steam flooded the room as Willow stepped out of the bathroom, curls and whisps spilling over the floor ethereally, as she ran the towel over her soaking wet hair. She paused for a moment looking around the suite. Letting her towels drop to the floor, she walked over to her suitcases and unzipped one of them. She pulled out a long, white, cottony nightgown and pulled it over her head. A tired yawn escaped her lips, as she stretched, getting comfortable in the night clothes. Unpacking would definitely be saved for a more morningy time.

That's when the cell phone rang. Willow picked it up off the night stand and took a quick look at the time. Ten PM, right on schedule. Willow's face broke out into a smile and she flipped the phone open, "Hey!" she exclaimed. She bobbed her head as she listened to the person on the other end. "No, the flight was good. Oooh! Ooh!" she flapped her hand excitedly, "And they showed Finding Nemo on the plane!"

The melt in her eager expression indicated, quite clearly, that the person on the other end had very little interest in movies about fish. She moved closer to the window, looking out over Los Angeles, her hand pressed against the pane of glass. "No." she said, with a pensive sigh. "They have no idea."

**  
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Love it? Hate it? Comment for more chapters. :D 


	3. Chapter 3

Title: Underneath It All  
Chapter: 3

Characters: ATS S5 Ensemble and Willow  
Pairing: Fred/Willow in later chapters  
Overall Rating: R  
Chapter Rating: PG  
Warnings This Chapter: None

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**Chapter 3  
**

Someone as smart as Willow ought to have known that rolling chairs are unstable objects. Yet there she was, standing on her tiptoes on her desk chair, reaching for a volume on the top shelf of a gargantuan bookshelf, which covered the entire back wall of her office. Each shelf filled with volumes, ancient and modern, books of great power. Some Willow wasn't even sure she wanted anywhere near her. Her fingers groping about an inch away from the spine of the book, her tongue protruding ever so slightly from her pursed lips.

Yes, someone as smart as Willow should know that a rolling chair is not a stable support. So someone as smart as Willow shouldn't have been surprised when the chair gave way underneath her, leaving nothing but a gap between her and the floor. However, a strong pair of hands managed to catch the witch just before she made a potentially painful impact.

Once she had righted herself, she turned to see Angel taking her intended target from the top shelf and handing it to her. She stared blankly at the book in her hand for a moment before looking up at Angel. "Thanks… oh and um, for catching me too."

"Well you've caught me twice before."

Angel's words were met with a temporary blank stare before a flicker of recognition set it. "Oh right. Soul spell. Sorry, my brain went… away without my permission for a minute."

Angel folded his arms over his chest. "Are you alright?"

"Huh? Oh yeah. First day jitters, is all." She replied shaking her free hand in demonstration of said jitters.

Missing the demonstration, Angel's eyes were locked on the empty space where the book was. "Couldn't you have just…" he wiggled his fingers in some sort of indication to what magic was in his brain.

"Well I could've but it's not really what magic is for. Why do with magic what you can do normally? In other ways lies badness." She said, voice softening at the end- a silence that filled up the office and cause Willow to turn to place the book on her desk.

"So. Sorry I didn't get to meet with you last night. Evil to stop and all."

"No. Don't worry about it. Evil stopping is a good." She replied. "Which is why I'm here." She turned, flashing a giant Willow smile at Angel.

"Right." Angel said with a down to business tone. "So… magical development. What kind of stuff do they want you doing here?"

Willow shuffled around the room. "Well since I kinda have the big Slayer Spell under my belt, I guess I have this reputation for new fields of magic, so basically they want me to direct teams- yikes by the way- to work on trying magics in ways they've never been used before." She turned to face Angel with a glint of excitement lighting up her already bright eyes. "I have this really cool idea like… a magical network throughout the city that can detect mystical abnormalities. Keep you ahead of the game." She bounced her eyebrows. "Though… now figuring out how to do it is the key. But once it's up L.A. could be demon free and safe and why do you look like you're not happy about this?"

Angel shook his head. "No I am. You just know I'm incapable of looking happy."

"Right, I very nearly forgot you were the winner of the Sunnydale Broodathon for several years running." She tapped her palm against her forehead. "How could I be so dumb? But still you could crack a smile once in a while Mr. Grumpy. I mean you're fighting the good fight, right?"

She watched Angel's intense expression which indicated wheels turning in his head she could never comprehend. "Are you?" he asked.

She took a deep breath, "I'm trying to." She replied. "I mean, like I said. That's why I'm here."

Angel took the liberty of sitting down on a plush looking chair, folding his ankle over his knee as he looked up at Willow. "See… we had a visit a little while ago from your friend Andrew. He told us your guys don't trust my guys anymore."

A bead of sweat formed on the side of Willow's face as she flashed a smile and let out a breathy, laugh. "Well you know, Andrew." She said waving her hand. "Well… um… actually you don't know him… that well… but he's such a drama queen. He likes to make every little thing sound like an epic movie. Honestly, you should see him make pop tarts. It's like Iron Chef with one contestant. One time he-"

"Miss Rosenberg?" a stout looking woman with brown hair in a bun and thick black framed glasses, appeared in the doorway. "There's a call for you from a Miss "Willow, get on the phone NOW". Should I tell her you're in a meeting?"

"Yes… thanks, Beth." Willow pleaded. The woman gave an understanding nod before disappearing from the room. The redhead turned back to Angel. "Beth's my secretary." She bounced up onto the balls of her feet. "I have a secretary."

"Wanna trade?" Angel deadpanned. "So who was that on the phone?"

"Um… my girlfriend. Question mark. Huge fight and not really feeling a strong urge to talk to her right now." Willow replied.

"Um… speaking of… how's Buffy?" he asked, voice soft.

"She's…" Willow paused. "Buffy… you know?"

A hint of a smile crossed Angel's lips. "I know."

Willow looked down at her desk, a day's worth of work awaiting her. "You know, I-" She looked back up.

The room was empty.

Sighing heavily she sat back down. "Five years and he's still Mr. Now You See Me Now You Don't."

+++

Red sunset light trickled through the necro-tempered glass and filled the office with an eerie glow as Beth set a steaming mug down on Willow's desk. "Here you are Miss Rosenberg. Thought you could use a nice treat."

The redhead beamed. "Thank you, Beth! You're the best." Willow grinned as she lifted the mug to her lips and took a sip. "Hmn… not store brand." She commented.

"Nope. Special brew that enhances energy." Beth said. "Plus mint."

"I like it." Willow replied before resuming her typing. Beth stepped out of the room, leaving the witch to her work.

It wasn't long before the ping of an IM sounded and a message from "TexanFred" popped up on the screen

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**TexanFred (8:03:02 PM): **Hey Willow! How do you feel about getting some Chinese tonight? There's probably some good old movie on TCM, too.

**  
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Willow smiled.

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**willowtree (8:03:59): **Sounds like fun! Meet me in the lobby in 10?

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